The massive regional-scale landfill waste facility proposed near Lusk will no longer proceed. Fingal County Council has made the decision.
According to reports in the Irish Times, around €33m and 14 years have been spent to date by Fingal County Council on the project. Additional monies amounting to more than €45 million were due to be spent on land if the project proceeded.
The Council has quoted multiple reasons for the decision, but it is clear that national policy and competition are the main ones.
This could however be viewed as a victory for the local community which opposed for the project for 14 years until a planning decision to grant was issued in March 2011.
The Council's decision not to proceed will end many local landowners concerns over the uncertainty of the future use of their lands.
To read the Irish Times story on which this summary is based, please click here.
www.bpsplanningconsultants.ie
Showing posts with label Fingal County Council. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fingal County Council. Show all posts
Friday, 16 December 2011
Friday, 6 May 2011
Sutton site for sale at 86% reduction
A site of nearly two acres near Sutton Dart station in north Dublin is for sale with planning for €1.55 million. It sold for €11 million in 2003
A HOUSING SITE of almost two acres at Sutton in north Dublin, which sold in 2003 for €11 million, is back on the market at €1.55 million.
The new guide price underlines the dramatic fall-off in the value of development land even in a highly popular and convenient area of north Dublin.
Sites in many provincial cities and towns are expected to take an even greater hit if and when receivers attempt to offload them.
Wesley Rothwell of CB Richard Ellis, who is acting for three low profile developers who bought the Sutton land from Dublin City Council, said the 1.98 acres on Railway Avenue – off Baldoyle Road – were now “priced to sell”.
The site is within a few minutes walk of Sutton Dart Station and is about 500m from Sutton Cross, where the shopping facilities include a large Superquinn supermarket and a hotel.
Fingal County Council originally granted planning permission for 75 apartments and a crèche on the site.
A subsequent appeal to An Bord Pleanála resulted in the number of units being reduced to 60, of which 41 are two-bedroom apartments, six are three-bedroom apartments, eight are one-bedroom homes and five are duplex units.
But with an estimated 10,000 apartments now overhanging the market in the greater Dublin area, Rothwell says demand has now switched to traditional style houses in established suburban areas near public transport.
The Sutton area as well as the adjoining areas of Clontarf and Howth are characterised by large family homes, often on spacious mature gardens.
A feasibility study prepared for the Railway Avenue site suggests that there is potential for 27 semi-detached houses with floor areas of 140sq m (1,506sq ft) as well as four two-bedroom duplex units and two two-bedroom apartments. Three-bedroom semis in this location would be expected to sell in the region of €350,000 to €375,000. “The big attraction here is that you are a minute’s walk from the Dart Station,” says Rothwell.
At a price of €1.55 million, the unit price per home under the feasibility study would work out at less than €47,000 compared to a previous cost of over €183,000 for each of the 60 apartments.
During the property boom, a landowner close by refused an offer of €10 million for a one-acre site that would accommodate 40 apartments. At that price it would have worked out at €250,000 per unit.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
A HOUSING SITE of almost two acres at Sutton in north Dublin, which sold in 2003 for €11 million, is back on the market at €1.55 million.
The new guide price underlines the dramatic fall-off in the value of development land even in a highly popular and convenient area of north Dublin.
Sites in many provincial cities and towns are expected to take an even greater hit if and when receivers attempt to offload them.
Wesley Rothwell of CB Richard Ellis, who is acting for three low profile developers who bought the Sutton land from Dublin City Council, said the 1.98 acres on Railway Avenue – off Baldoyle Road – were now “priced to sell”.
The site is within a few minutes walk of Sutton Dart Station and is about 500m from Sutton Cross, where the shopping facilities include a large Superquinn supermarket and a hotel.
Fingal County Council originally granted planning permission for 75 apartments and a crèche on the site.
A subsequent appeal to An Bord Pleanála resulted in the number of units being reduced to 60, of which 41 are two-bedroom apartments, six are three-bedroom apartments, eight are one-bedroom homes and five are duplex units.
But with an estimated 10,000 apartments now overhanging the market in the greater Dublin area, Rothwell says demand has now switched to traditional style houses in established suburban areas near public transport.
The Sutton area as well as the adjoining areas of Clontarf and Howth are characterised by large family homes, often on spacious mature gardens.
A feasibility study prepared for the Railway Avenue site suggests that there is potential for 27 semi-detached houses with floor areas of 140sq m (1,506sq ft) as well as four two-bedroom duplex units and two two-bedroom apartments. Three-bedroom semis in this location would be expected to sell in the region of €350,000 to €375,000. “The big attraction here is that you are a minute’s walk from the Dart Station,” says Rothwell.
At a price of €1.55 million, the unit price per home under the feasibility study would work out at less than €47,000 compared to a previous cost of over €183,000 for each of the 60 apartments.
During the property boom, a landowner close by refused an offer of €10 million for a one-acre site that would accommodate 40 apartments. At that price it would have worked out at €250,000 per unit.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Friday, 13 August 2010
Permission for Aldi store in Portmarnock overturned
LOW-COST supermarket chain Aldi has been refused permission by An Bord Pleanála to build a branch on the Portmarnock coast, opposite one of Dublin’s most popular beaches.
Last March, Fingal County Council gave approval for the supermarket in the grounds of the White Sands Hotel on the Strand Road opposite the Portmarnock Martello tower and beach, despite having received more than 50 objections to the application.
The supermarket and off-licence development would have had a 75-space car park, and involved demolition of some hotel buildings.
However An Bord Pleanála has this week overturned the council’s decision.
In its decision, the board said the construction of the supermarket would have been contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area. It also found that the development would have contravened the Fingal County Development Plan.
The applicants had failed to prove that there were not more suitable sites for retail development within Portmarnock village, on the outskirts of the village, or on other appropriately zoned lands in the area, the board said.
The development, by virtue of the amount of floor space and the intensity of use proposed, would not complement the primary use of the site, which was as a hotel, it said. For this reason the board found that the decision contravened the county development plan.
Local Labour county councillor Peter Coyle said the supermarket should never have been granted permission by the council.
“There was major outrage amongst the general public about the decision . . . planning permission at the White Sands Hotel site was clearly contrary to the objectives of the county development plan.”
Mr Coyle said he had made this point in his appeals to the council, before permission was originally granted.
He said he had also appealed to the county manager David O’Connor on a number of occasions to become directly involved in the case.
Mr O’Connor had been been director of planning with the council when the development plan was being drafted and adopted.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Last March, Fingal County Council gave approval for the supermarket in the grounds of the White Sands Hotel on the Strand Road opposite the Portmarnock Martello tower and beach, despite having received more than 50 objections to the application.
The supermarket and off-licence development would have had a 75-space car park, and involved demolition of some hotel buildings.
However An Bord Pleanála has this week overturned the council’s decision.
In its decision, the board said the construction of the supermarket would have been contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area. It also found that the development would have contravened the Fingal County Development Plan.
The applicants had failed to prove that there were not more suitable sites for retail development within Portmarnock village, on the outskirts of the village, or on other appropriately zoned lands in the area, the board said.
The development, by virtue of the amount of floor space and the intensity of use proposed, would not complement the primary use of the site, which was as a hotel, it said. For this reason the board found that the decision contravened the county development plan.
Local Labour county councillor Peter Coyle said the supermarket should never have been granted permission by the council.
“There was major outrage amongst the general public about the decision . . . planning permission at the White Sands Hotel site was clearly contrary to the objectives of the county development plan.”
Mr Coyle said he had made this point in his appeals to the council, before permission was originally granted.
He said he had also appealed to the county manager David O’Connor on a number of occasions to become directly involved in the case.
Mr O’Connor had been been director of planning with the council when the development plan was being drafted and adopted.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Thursday, 6 May 2010
Tesco's windmills dwarf Liberty Hall
Tesco's plan to build two wind turbines - taller than Liberty Hall - in the north Dublin countryside is being challenged by local residents.
Appeals have been lodged with An Bord Pleanála against a decision for the go-ahead to the plan.
The turbines are so tall that search and rescue helicopters will have to plot new routes to safely bypass the turbines in poor visibility.
In addition, air traffic control at Dublin Airport has concerns that the two turbines - which would soar nearly 100 metres over Donabate, Portrane and the surrounding areas - would be picked up by its radar system.
As well as the residents' move to block the plan, Tesco itself is appealing conditions set down by Fingal County Council planners.
The turbines are to be built to help power the retail giant's distribution centre in Donabate. They will have a support base of 65 metres, topped by a huge blade that will bring the total height to 91 metres.
By comparison, Liberty Hall is just 60 metres and the country's tallest building - the Elysian in Cork - is 72 metres in height.
Following concerns raised by both the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) and Dublin Airport, Tesco engaged a consultancy to determine the potential impact. The major concerns expressed by the IAA were addressed and Fingal County Council granted permission subject to 15 strict conditions.
In its appeal, the Donabate Portrane Community Council cites the local authority's development plan, which states that renewable energy developments should not have an unacceptable impact on the character and appearance of the surrounding area.
The appeal states that photomontages included with the planning application "clearly show the surrounding area visually impacted significantly".
Particular concerns are raised over the the impact on Newbridge Demesne - a heritage area of national importance - Broadmeadows estuary and Rogerstown estuary, which are both designated Special Conservation Areas.
"The turbines will be visible from within Newbridge Demesne," the appeal states. "Newbridge Demesne is not only a public amenity, it is a tourist attraction and decreasing its attraction has economic consequences for the Donabate area."
Local residents, John and Maeve Riordan, complain in their appeal that the turbines would visually dominate the area. They also describe the potential impact on flight paths from Dublin Airport as a "primary concern."
Planning permission was granted after information was clarified with the IAA, but the organisation "continued to issue caution", the appeal points out.
www.buckplanning.ie
Appeals have been lodged with An Bord Pleanála against a decision for the go-ahead to the plan.
The turbines are so tall that search and rescue helicopters will have to plot new routes to safely bypass the turbines in poor visibility.
In addition, air traffic control at Dublin Airport has concerns that the two turbines - which would soar nearly 100 metres over Donabate, Portrane and the surrounding areas - would be picked up by its radar system.
As well as the residents' move to block the plan, Tesco itself is appealing conditions set down by Fingal County Council planners.
The turbines are to be built to help power the retail giant's distribution centre in Donabate. They will have a support base of 65 metres, topped by a huge blade that will bring the total height to 91 metres.
By comparison, Liberty Hall is just 60 metres and the country's tallest building - the Elysian in Cork - is 72 metres in height.
Following concerns raised by both the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) and Dublin Airport, Tesco engaged a consultancy to determine the potential impact. The major concerns expressed by the IAA were addressed and Fingal County Council granted permission subject to 15 strict conditions.
In its appeal, the Donabate Portrane Community Council cites the local authority's development plan, which states that renewable energy developments should not have an unacceptable impact on the character and appearance of the surrounding area.
The appeal states that photomontages included with the planning application "clearly show the surrounding area visually impacted significantly".
Particular concerns are raised over the the impact on Newbridge Demesne - a heritage area of national importance - Broadmeadows estuary and Rogerstown estuary, which are both designated Special Conservation Areas.
"The turbines will be visible from within Newbridge Demesne," the appeal states. "Newbridge Demesne is not only a public amenity, it is a tourist attraction and decreasing its attraction has economic consequences for the Donabate area."
Local residents, John and Maeve Riordan, complain in their appeal that the turbines would visually dominate the area. They also describe the potential impact on flight paths from Dublin Airport as a "primary concern."
Planning permission was granted after information was clarified with the IAA, but the organisation "continued to issue caution", the appeal points out.
www.buckplanning.ie
Thursday, 15 April 2010
Fingal draft plan launched with loads of bullish talk
WE MIGHT be deep in recession but Fingal County Council isn’t letting that stop it bandying about words like “upturn” and “success” and “positive growth”.
In a smorgasbord of optimism worthy of the height of the boom days, the Draft Fingal Development Plan 2011-2017 was launched at a conference organised by Keith Simpson and Associates with a bullish title – Fingal: delivering success for the Dublin region.
The conference looked at the role of strategic planning and economic and market stimulus in achieving current and future success.
Themes included: how can we capture the potential of the Dublin region and convert that to tangible benefits for the place and community?; and capturing success – the key role of promoting innovation and enterprise as fundamental to future growth.
Speakers included the Minister for Education and Skills Mary Coughlan, who gave the opening address, and Dr William Hynes, director of strategic planning at Keith Simpson and Associates, and IAVI president Aine Myler who spoke on the “need for a new approach”.
Strange, perhaps, that the Minister for Education and Skills was launching a draft development plan and not the Minister for the Environment John Gormley?
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
In a smorgasbord of optimism worthy of the height of the boom days, the Draft Fingal Development Plan 2011-2017 was launched at a conference organised by Keith Simpson and Associates with a bullish title – Fingal: delivering success for the Dublin region.
The conference looked at the role of strategic planning and economic and market stimulus in achieving current and future success.
Themes included: how can we capture the potential of the Dublin region and convert that to tangible benefits for the place and community?; and capturing success – the key role of promoting innovation and enterprise as fundamental to future growth.
Speakers included the Minister for Education and Skills Mary Coughlan, who gave the opening address, and Dr William Hynes, director of strategic planning at Keith Simpson and Associates, and IAVI president Aine Myler who spoke on the “need for a new approach”.
Strange, perhaps, that the Minister for Education and Skills was launching a draft development plan and not the Minister for the Environment John Gormley?
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Tuesday, 16 March 2010
Aldi to build branch near Martello tower
LOW-COST SUPERMARKET chain Aldi has been granted permission to build a branch on the Portmarnock coast, opposite one of Dublin’s most popular beaches.
Fingal County Council this week granted permission for the supermarket in the grounds of the White Sands Hotel on the Strand Road opposite the Portmarnock Martello tower and beach, despite having received more than 50 objections to the plan.
The supermarket and off-licence development will have a 75-space car park, and will involve demolition of some hotel buildings.
Objections centred on the effect the development would have on one of Dublin’s best beaches known as the “velvet strand” and on the increase in traffic, particularly in summer months.
Local Portmarnock Labour Councillor Peter Coyle said he believed the decision was made in error based on a “colouring mistake” on the county development plan. Prior to 2005, the area was zoned as residential. However, this was seen as unfairly limiting to the hotel which had been on the site since the 1930s, Mr Coyle said.
To allow the hotel to build complementary facilities such as a leisure centre or a swimming pool, the councillors decided to include a provision in the 2005 development plan to give the hotel lands their own zoning. This zoning was included as a “local objective” to “retain the primary use of hotel on this site”. However, the colour used in the development plan map to indicate the new zoning was the same as that used to indicate suburban centre zoning.
Aldi “picked up on the colour”, Mr Coyle said and made their application on this basis. “The county manager should have intervened and it is very disappointing that he didn’t.”
Mr Coyle said he had appealed to county manager David O’Connor to become directly involved: “I am now going to appeal the council’s decision to An Bord Pleanála and I will seek an oral hearing.”
A spokeswoman for Fingal County Council said the council does not comment on individual planning applications or decisions.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Fingal County Council this week granted permission for the supermarket in the grounds of the White Sands Hotel on the Strand Road opposite the Portmarnock Martello tower and beach, despite having received more than 50 objections to the plan.
The supermarket and off-licence development will have a 75-space car park, and will involve demolition of some hotel buildings.
Objections centred on the effect the development would have on one of Dublin’s best beaches known as the “velvet strand” and on the increase in traffic, particularly in summer months.
Local Portmarnock Labour Councillor Peter Coyle said he believed the decision was made in error based on a “colouring mistake” on the county development plan. Prior to 2005, the area was zoned as residential. However, this was seen as unfairly limiting to the hotel which had been on the site since the 1930s, Mr Coyle said.
To allow the hotel to build complementary facilities such as a leisure centre or a swimming pool, the councillors decided to include a provision in the 2005 development plan to give the hotel lands their own zoning. This zoning was included as a “local objective” to “retain the primary use of hotel on this site”. However, the colour used in the development plan map to indicate the new zoning was the same as that used to indicate suburban centre zoning.
Aldi “picked up on the colour”, Mr Coyle said and made their application on this basis. “The county manager should have intervened and it is very disappointing that he didn’t.”
Mr Coyle said he had appealed to county manager David O’Connor to become directly involved: “I am now going to appeal the council’s decision to An Bord Pleanála and I will seek an oral hearing.”
A spokeswoman for Fingal County Council said the council does not comment on individual planning applications or decisions.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Tuesday, 27 October 2009
Local area plan to be completed
A LONG-awaited local area plan for Rivermeade in St Margaret's will be completed by the middle of next year, according to Fingal County Council.
Cllr Tom Kelleher (Lab) put a motion to a meeting of the Balbriggan/Swords Area Committee last week asking for an update on the RV1 or rural village plan. The council's planning department said that a number of issues identified in December of last year have delayed the plan.
Some of those issues relate to the need to examine the ecological impacts of development in the area on the Broadmeadows Estuary through the river Ward which traverses Rivermeade.
The limited capacity
of Swords Wastewater Treatment Plant which services the area is also an issue and the possibility of increasing flooding of the Ward River.
The location of the proposed Swords Western Ring Road also had to be looked at as part of the plan.
The council says to progress the local area plan for Rivermeade fully, the results of the Fingal East Meath Flood Risk Assessment Management Study FRAM), is required.
Interim results from the study have been delayed, but are now due in November 2009.
The planning department hope that, pending those results and of its own 'appropriate assessment' of the risk to Broadmeadows Estuary, the plan will be completed by early to mid 2010.
John MANNING
Fingal Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
Cllr Tom Kelleher (Lab) put a motion to a meeting of the Balbriggan/Swords Area Committee last week asking for an update on the RV1 or rural village plan. The council's planning department said that a number of issues identified in December of last year have delayed the plan.
Some of those issues relate to the need to examine the ecological impacts of development in the area on the Broadmeadows Estuary through the river Ward which traverses Rivermeade.
The limited capacity
of Swords Wastewater Treatment Plant which services the area is also an issue and the possibility of increasing flooding of the Ward River.
The location of the proposed Swords Western Ring Road also had to be looked at as part of the plan.
The council says to progress the local area plan for Rivermeade fully, the results of the Fingal East Meath Flood Risk Assessment Management Study FRAM), is required.
Interim results from the study have been delayed, but are now due in November 2009.
The planning department hope that, pending those results and of its own 'appropriate assessment' of the risk to Broadmeadows Estuary, the plan will be completed by early to mid 2010.
John MANNING
Fingal Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
Fingal area plans making 'steady progress'
THE council is reporting 'steady progress' on a raft of Local Area Plans (LAP) that remain on its drawing board for completion around the county.
But the local authority is blaming 'pressing demands on staff resources' for the delay in progressing some of the plans. The statement came in response to a question tabled by Cllr David O'Connor (NP), who asked for a progress report on outstanding LAPs around the county. Among the outstanding plans is one for Broomfield in Malahide which the council plans to finish by mid-2010.
Also planned for completion around that date is the LAP for lands at Oldtown and Mooretown in Swords. Also in Swords, plans for Metropark, Fosterstown North and the lands at Celestica are still on the drawing board.
Bidding for a 2010 completion date are plans for Rivermeade in St Margaret's and Coolquay, with the latter heavily dependent on how the proposed Thornton Hall prison project progresses or does not.
Lands at Cloghran and Rolestown are also lined up for the LAP treatment, with the Rolestown plan due for completion in late-2010.
In the north of the county there are rural plans in the offing for Naul, Garristown, Oldtown, Ballyboughal and Balscadden, which are all due for completion late next year.
An LAP and port study for Bremore in Balbriggan is also on the drawing board but no definitive date has been given for its completion or the completion of an LAP for Townsparks in Skerries.
John MANNING
Fingal Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
But the local authority is blaming 'pressing demands on staff resources' for the delay in progressing some of the plans. The statement came in response to a question tabled by Cllr David O'Connor (NP), who asked for a progress report on outstanding LAPs around the county. Among the outstanding plans is one for Broomfield in Malahide which the council plans to finish by mid-2010.
Also planned for completion around that date is the LAP for lands at Oldtown and Mooretown in Swords. Also in Swords, plans for Metropark, Fosterstown North and the lands at Celestica are still on the drawing board.
Bidding for a 2010 completion date are plans for Rivermeade in St Margaret's and Coolquay, with the latter heavily dependent on how the proposed Thornton Hall prison project progresses or does not.
Lands at Cloghran and Rolestown are also lined up for the LAP treatment, with the Rolestown plan due for completion in late-2010.
In the north of the county there are rural plans in the offing for Naul, Garristown, Oldtown, Ballyboughal and Balscadden, which are all due for completion late next year.
An LAP and port study for Bremore in Balbriggan is also on the drawing board but no definitive date has been given for its completion or the completion of an LAP for Townsparks in Skerries.
John MANNING
Fingal Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
Monday, 5 October 2009
Four years' worth of planning files missing in Fingal
FINGAL County Council is missing four years' worth of planning files due to an "ad hoc and haphazard" approach to filing, it has said.
The authority was asked to furnish records of planning applications around Dublin Airport stretching back over four decades as part of an ongoing investigation into controversial planning policy.
Aggrieved landowners in north County Dublin believe they were systematically prevented from securing planning permission due to 'red zone' restrictions, which designate areas under flight paths deemed unsafe to build on.
The Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) has since unveiled plans for a €4bn Dublin Airport City, much of which, landowners say, will fall within those controversial red zones.
At a recent Fingal County Council meeting, Fine Gael's Anne Devitt sought records on all proposed developments in the red zones since 1968 and details on who objected to them.
However, an official response to the query stated that while the task would be enormous, many of the files were simply not kept.
"The files from 1967 to 1994 were microfilmed in an ad hoc and haphazard manner and not all of the files were microfilmed," a statement said.
"The files from 1994 to 1997 were never microfilmed and are no longer available and the files from 1997 to 2003 are stored off site."
Landowner Ken O'Carroll was refused permission to develop both a hotel and a car park in the red zones in 1996, the same period as the files that are deemed "no longer available".
He has been fighting Aer Rianta, now the DAA, for years to get answers as to the apparent double standard in planning that forced him to sell his land while the DAA developed in areas forbidden to everyone else.
O'Carroll insists that compensation is not the issue but that reasonable answers must be given to locals whose lands were "sterilised" of value by the restrictions.
"I could have said that is enough, I'm out of here, but I can't because of how badly people have been treated. A lot of them don't have the power to fight this," he said.
"Everyone's land was sterilised under this and you had no comeback and no compensation. No one will tell us who put in these red zones. We are trying to just get an answer."
A spokesman for the DAA said that the old red zones had since been deemed unsuitable and a new system is now being put in place.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
The authority was asked to furnish records of planning applications around Dublin Airport stretching back over four decades as part of an ongoing investigation into controversial planning policy.
Aggrieved landowners in north County Dublin believe they were systematically prevented from securing planning permission due to 'red zone' restrictions, which designate areas under flight paths deemed unsafe to build on.
The Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) has since unveiled plans for a €4bn Dublin Airport City, much of which, landowners say, will fall within those controversial red zones.
At a recent Fingal County Council meeting, Fine Gael's Anne Devitt sought records on all proposed developments in the red zones since 1968 and details on who objected to them.
However, an official response to the query stated that while the task would be enormous, many of the files were simply not kept.
"The files from 1967 to 1994 were microfilmed in an ad hoc and haphazard manner and not all of the files were microfilmed," a statement said.
"The files from 1994 to 1997 were never microfilmed and are no longer available and the files from 1997 to 2003 are stored off site."
Landowner Ken O'Carroll was refused permission to develop both a hotel and a car park in the red zones in 1996, the same period as the files that are deemed "no longer available".
He has been fighting Aer Rianta, now the DAA, for years to get answers as to the apparent double standard in planning that forced him to sell his land while the DAA developed in areas forbidden to everyone else.
O'Carroll insists that compensation is not the issue but that reasonable answers must be given to locals whose lands were "sterilised" of value by the restrictions.
"I could have said that is enough, I'm out of here, but I can't because of how badly people have been treated. A lot of them don't have the power to fight this," he said.
"Everyone's land was sterilised under this and you had no comeback and no compensation. No one will tell us who put in these red zones. We are trying to just get an answer."
A spokesman for the DAA said that the old red zones had since been deemed unsuitable and a new system is now being put in place.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Thursday, 2 July 2009
Court orders demolition of extensions to seaside hut
A WOMAN’S development plans to turn a hut she calls home into a dream seaside residence lay in ruin yesterday after a judge told her to demolish extensions to the property.
Judge Jacqueline Linnane heard that Margaret Duffy had not sought planning permission to treble the size of the timber sheeted chalet among high amenity sand dunes in Donabate, Co Dublin.
Barrister Damian Keaney told the Circuit Civil Court that Fingal County Council had to obtain a court injunction before Ms Duffy told builders to cease construction on the chalet known as “Sandstorm”.
Richard Dunne, a Fingal County Council planning officer, said builders had reached roof level on major solid block extensions to the northern and southern aspects of the two-bedroom wooden chalet before work stopped.
Now Ms Duffy has to demolish both extensions as well as topple part of a 30 sq metre garage she had already built without planning permission and which she has to reduce in size by six sq metres.
Mr Keaney told the court the local authority was willing to meet Ms Duffy on site within the next fortnight to mark out what unauthorised developments had to be demolished.
He said the county council was agreeable to her being given a further four months to carry out the demolition works.
Ms Duffy, in an application for retention permission had claimed ownership of property at Walnut Park, Courtlands, Griffith Avenue, Dublin; an apartment in Turvey Villas, Donabate; an apartment at Loftus Court, Dublin and a property at Ballough, Lusk, Co Dublin. She gave her home address as “Sandstorm,” Balcarrick, Donabate, where she said she lived for more than seven years.
Mr Keaney told the court the local authority had refused retention permission, a decision which had been backed on appeal by An Bord Pleanála.
The unauthorised development had breached Fingal’s development plan.
Ms Duffy, described as a cashier with a cash and carry company, was supported in court by her husband, Stuart.
They both said Fingal County Council officials had proved unco-operative with attempts to sort matters out following initial court proceedings.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Judge Jacqueline Linnane heard that Margaret Duffy had not sought planning permission to treble the size of the timber sheeted chalet among high amenity sand dunes in Donabate, Co Dublin.
Barrister Damian Keaney told the Circuit Civil Court that Fingal County Council had to obtain a court injunction before Ms Duffy told builders to cease construction on the chalet known as “Sandstorm”.
Richard Dunne, a Fingal County Council planning officer, said builders had reached roof level on major solid block extensions to the northern and southern aspects of the two-bedroom wooden chalet before work stopped.
Now Ms Duffy has to demolish both extensions as well as topple part of a 30 sq metre garage she had already built without planning permission and which she has to reduce in size by six sq metres.
Mr Keaney told the court the local authority was willing to meet Ms Duffy on site within the next fortnight to mark out what unauthorised developments had to be demolished.
He said the county council was agreeable to her being given a further four months to carry out the demolition works.
Ms Duffy, in an application for retention permission had claimed ownership of property at Walnut Park, Courtlands, Griffith Avenue, Dublin; an apartment in Turvey Villas, Donabate; an apartment at Loftus Court, Dublin and a property at Ballough, Lusk, Co Dublin. She gave her home address as “Sandstorm,” Balcarrick, Donabate, where she said she lived for more than seven years.
Mr Keaney told the court the local authority had refused retention permission, a decision which had been backed on appeal by An Bord Pleanála.
The unauthorised development had breached Fingal’s development plan.
Ms Duffy, described as a cashier with a cash and carry company, was supported in court by her husband, Stuart.
They both said Fingal County Council officials had proved unco-operative with attempts to sort matters out following initial court proceedings.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 14 June 2009
Council has spent €32m on controversial super dump
FINGAL county council has spent a staggering €32m on a planned super dump in north Dublin, a final decision on which is due later this month.
Both An Bord Pleanála and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are set to rule on the controversial landfill after nearly five years of deliberations and five oral hearings.
The contentious 500,000-tonne capacity Nevitt landfill facility in Lusk was even the subject of a complaint to the European Commission last year.
To date, the local authority has spent just over €26m on land acquisition to accommodate the development.
Other cost outlays by the council include €1.45m on a site-selection study and €5.6m on consultants, site investigation, legal fees and borehole compensation.
"The council has thrown money at this since September 2004 when it was announced. They say they can justify the spending but it is a massive waste of public money," said a spokesman for the Nevitt Lusk Action Group (NLAG).
"There are a lot of very contentious issues around this. There is a water supply here called the Bog of the Ring and we have got evidence that this is linked to the area where the landfill is going. The horticulture industry is worth €600m a year to the economy and this will be wiped out if [the dump] goes ahead."
Fingal county council says that the level of expenditure on a programme of this magnitude is not at all unusual, nor is its timing ahead of a ruling by the planning appeals authority.
In relation to claims of water contamination, a spokeswoman said: "It's up to the [EPA] to decide whether the risk is significant enough not to allow the landfill to go ahead."
But she added that the amount of water in question is not significant in the overall context of water in the region.
The landfill is part of the overall Dublin waste-management plan, together with the Ringsend incinerator, composting sites and recycling facilities.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Both An Bord Pleanála and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are set to rule on the controversial landfill after nearly five years of deliberations and five oral hearings.
The contentious 500,000-tonne capacity Nevitt landfill facility in Lusk was even the subject of a complaint to the European Commission last year.
To date, the local authority has spent just over €26m on land acquisition to accommodate the development.
Other cost outlays by the council include €1.45m on a site-selection study and €5.6m on consultants, site investigation, legal fees and borehole compensation.
"The council has thrown money at this since September 2004 when it was announced. They say they can justify the spending but it is a massive waste of public money," said a spokesman for the Nevitt Lusk Action Group (NLAG).
"There are a lot of very contentious issues around this. There is a water supply here called the Bog of the Ring and we have got evidence that this is linked to the area where the landfill is going. The horticulture industry is worth €600m a year to the economy and this will be wiped out if [the dump] goes ahead."
Fingal county council says that the level of expenditure on a programme of this magnitude is not at all unusual, nor is its timing ahead of a ruling by the planning appeals authority.
In relation to claims of water contamination, a spokeswoman said: "It's up to the [EPA] to decide whether the risk is significant enough not to allow the landfill to go ahead."
But she added that the amount of water in question is not significant in the overall context of water in the region.
The landfill is part of the overall Dublin waste-management plan, together with the Ringsend incinerator, composting sites and recycling facilities.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Monday, 16 March 2009
Indoor ski resort given the cold shoulder
PLANNING: PLANS FOR a €100 million indoor ski resort and extreme sports centre in Tyrrelstown, Co Dublin have been given the cold shoulder by planners at Fingal County Council.
Dubbed “Snowtopia” by its promoters, the plans features two indoor ski slopes, Ireland’s first indoor ice-climbing area, a separate rock-climbing facility, as well as shops, paintball centre, cafés, restaurants and a cinema.
Refusing permission, planners at Fingal County Council said the ski resort would be “prejudicial” to the possible future expansion of a neighbouring pharmaceutical company.
The scheme’s cinema, according to planners, would also adversely impact on a cinema in the Blanchardstown centre.
Planners also stated that the scheme would lead to the creation of an unsustainable car-dependent development.
Expressing disappointment at the decision, developer Rick Larkin of Twinlite has vowed to appeal the decision to An Bord Pleanála.
Twinlite, responsible for the 2,000-unit Tyrrelstown scheme in north Dublin, had hoped to open the centre in the winter of 2010. They say the scheme will provide employment for over 1,000 people.
The main objectors to the scheme were the IDA, Bristol-Myers Squibb pharmaceutical company, and UCI Cinemas who operate a facility in Blanchardstown.
When the scheme was first unveiled last December Twinlite said it expected up to 1.5 million visitors a year to the development.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Dubbed “Snowtopia” by its promoters, the plans features two indoor ski slopes, Ireland’s first indoor ice-climbing area, a separate rock-climbing facility, as well as shops, paintball centre, cafés, restaurants and a cinema.
Refusing permission, planners at Fingal County Council said the ski resort would be “prejudicial” to the possible future expansion of a neighbouring pharmaceutical company.
The scheme’s cinema, according to planners, would also adversely impact on a cinema in the Blanchardstown centre.
Planners also stated that the scheme would lead to the creation of an unsustainable car-dependent development.
Expressing disappointment at the decision, developer Rick Larkin of Twinlite has vowed to appeal the decision to An Bord Pleanála.
Twinlite, responsible for the 2,000-unit Tyrrelstown scheme in north Dublin, had hoped to open the centre in the winter of 2010. They say the scheme will provide employment for over 1,000 people.
The main objectors to the scheme were the IDA, Bristol-Myers Squibb pharmaceutical company, and UCI Cinemas who operate a facility in Blanchardstown.
When the scheme was first unveiled last December Twinlite said it expected up to 1.5 million visitors a year to the development.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 8 February 2009
Swords mall extension to provide 3,000 jobs
Up to 3,000 construction jobs are to be created in north Dublin after the €500m expansion of the Pavilions shopping centre in Swords was given the go-ahead by Fingal County Council.
However, developer Joe O'Reilly's company, Chartered Land, may have to pay more than €50m in levies as part of the conditions imposed by the local authority.
The authority has told O'Reilly he will have to pay €24.1m towards public infrastructure and facilities, up to €15m towards a metro box, up to €7m on metro plaza and more than €6.1m in respect of the Metro North proposal.
Chartered Land originally applied for 137 shops including House of Fraser and Marks & Spencer as part of what will be the third phase of the centre. Permission was also sought for 35 restaurants, an office block, a pub, childcare facilities, a medical centre, 189 residential units and more than 3,000 parking spaces. The extension is planned for completion in 2013.
Chartered Land bought the complex in July 2006 for €575m and later sold part of the centre to the Irish Property Unit Trust and Irish Life for around €240m.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
However, developer Joe O'Reilly's company, Chartered Land, may have to pay more than €50m in levies as part of the conditions imposed by the local authority.
The authority has told O'Reilly he will have to pay €24.1m towards public infrastructure and facilities, up to €15m towards a metro box, up to €7m on metro plaza and more than €6.1m in respect of the Metro North proposal.
Chartered Land originally applied for 137 shops including House of Fraser and Marks & Spencer as part of what will be the third phase of the centre. Permission was also sought for 35 restaurants, an office block, a pub, childcare facilities, a medical centre, 189 residential units and more than 3,000 parking spaces. The extension is planned for completion in 2013.
Chartered Land bought the complex in July 2006 for €575m and later sold part of the centre to the Irish Property Unit Trust and Irish Life for around €240m.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 1 February 2009
Ben Dunne objects as hearses pose threat to business at his health club
Former supermarket chief Ben Dunne is appealing a decision to give planning permission for a €15m nursing home close to his Northwood health and fitness centre in Santry, citing a lack of room for hearses to remove deceased residents.
As well as contacting An Bord Pleanála, Dunne has also written to HSE chief executive Brendan Drumm challenging the organisation's support for the home, which is being developed by Irish nursing-home chain TLC Centre Limited. Dunne claims the HSE backed the development without examining the application in detail.
In his original objection to Fingal County Council, Dunne argued that the development's lack of accommodation for hearses was "a unique but significant oversight".
"[The plan] fails to provide the adequate point for a hearse to remove the corpse of a deceased resident in a respectful manner," he said. "Obviously, it would be wholly inappropriate to do so through the main entrance and foyer of the development, causing undue stress to employees and fellow residents alike."
The proposed nursing home, if built, will have accommodation for 100 people and will be built next to TLC's existing facility in Santry.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
As well as contacting An Bord Pleanála, Dunne has also written to HSE chief executive Brendan Drumm challenging the organisation's support for the home, which is being developed by Irish nursing-home chain TLC Centre Limited. Dunne claims the HSE backed the development without examining the application in detail.
In his original objection to Fingal County Council, Dunne argued that the development's lack of accommodation for hearses was "a unique but significant oversight".
"[The plan] fails to provide the adequate point for a hearse to remove the corpse of a deceased resident in a respectful manner," he said. "Obviously, it would be wholly inappropriate to do so through the main entrance and foyer of the development, causing undue stress to employees and fellow residents alike."
The proposed nursing home, if built, will have accommodation for 100 people and will be built next to TLC's existing facility in Santry.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Thursday, 23 October 2008
Over 1,050 homes for Balbriggan
CRESCENT PARK Properties has been granted permission by Fingal County Council for over 1,050 apartments and houses in Balbriggan, Co Dublin.
The plan for the 90-acre site south of Flemington Lane is for a scheme of two to four storeys with 296 apartments, over 300 duplexes and 394 houses.
David and Karl Pierce, the directors of the firm, have also got permission for a landscaped open space to include a public park. A 1.8-hectare site is being reserved for a primary school.
Meanwhile, Manor Park Homebuilders has been granted permission by Fingal County Council for 284 apartments and houses at Ongar village in the Strategic Development Zone (SDZ) as well as for shops, pub, takeaway, restaurant, off- licence, playground and village green with sports facilities.
The Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
The plan for the 90-acre site south of Flemington Lane is for a scheme of two to four storeys with 296 apartments, over 300 duplexes and 394 houses.
David and Karl Pierce, the directors of the firm, have also got permission for a landscaped open space to include a public park. A 1.8-hectare site is being reserved for a primary school.
Meanwhile, Manor Park Homebuilders has been granted permission by Fingal County Council for 284 apartments and houses at Ongar village in the Strategic Development Zone (SDZ) as well as for shops, pub, takeaway, restaurant, off- licence, playground and village green with sports facilities.
The Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Thursday, 16 October 2008
224 homes for Clonsilla SDZ
FIRTH DEVELOPMENTS is to submit a planning application to Fingal County Council for 224 houses and apartments on a 12.9-acre site at Hansfield SDZ, which was part of St Joseph's Hospital in Clonsilla, Dublin 15.
The developer, whose directors are John Fitzsimons and John McLoughlin, is looking to build 115 houses (mostly three and four-beds) and 70 duplexes in six four- storey blocks. There would also be apartments in two blocks and 366 car-parking spaces.
Meanwhile Castlethorn Construction has been granted planning permission for 447 apartments and duplexes at Pelletstown, Dublin 14.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
The developer, whose directors are John Fitzsimons and John McLoughlin, is looking to build 115 houses (mostly three and four-beds) and 70 duplexes in six four- storey blocks. There would also be apartments in two blocks and 366 car-parking spaces.
Meanwhile Castlethorn Construction has been granted planning permission for 447 apartments and duplexes at Pelletstown, Dublin 14.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 14 September 2008
Moriarty planning €30m development in Skerries
Businessman and former Fianna Fáil election candidate Luke Moriarty plans to build a €30 million ‘‘neighbourhood centre’’ in Skerries in north Co Dublin.
The development in the centre of the town will consist of a SuperValu supermarket, 15 other shops, 67 apartments and an underground car park with 400 spaces. Moriarty, whose interests include supermarkets and hotels, applied for planning permission for the project last week.
He said he hoped to secure planning permission within the next six to nine months, while the building process would take a further 18 months. ‘‘The total investment will be between €25 million and €30 million,” Moriarty said.
Moriarty already operates a supermarket on part of the site for the proposed development and has acquired a number of adjoining properties. ‘‘We have been putting the site together for four to five years,” he said.
The centre will be anchored by a 13,000 square foot SuperValu outlet, and will also house two other large retailers and 13 smaller shop units.
Moriarty, who failed to win a seat in last year’s general election, also owns SuperValu supermarkets in Palmerstown, west Dublin, and in Balbriggan in north Dublin. He has just completed a €7.5 million refurbishment of the Palmerstown store and a €7 million extension of the Balbriggan development, which also includes more than 70 apartments.
The businessman also has two hotels – the Bracken Court in Balbriggan and the Courtyard in Leixlip, which stands on the site of a brewery once owned and run by Arthur Guinness. The Bracken Court reopened last week after a €7 million refit following a fire.
‘‘We were shut for 20 weeks, but we worked day and night to get it back open,” said Moriarty. He said he was interesting in acquiring other supermarkets or hotels if they came on the market. ‘‘We are open for business and keen to expand,” he said.
Sunday Business Post
www.buckplanning.ie
The development in the centre of the town will consist of a SuperValu supermarket, 15 other shops, 67 apartments and an underground car park with 400 spaces. Moriarty, whose interests include supermarkets and hotels, applied for planning permission for the project last week.
He said he hoped to secure planning permission within the next six to nine months, while the building process would take a further 18 months. ‘‘The total investment will be between €25 million and €30 million,” Moriarty said.
Moriarty already operates a supermarket on part of the site for the proposed development and has acquired a number of adjoining properties. ‘‘We have been putting the site together for four to five years,” he said.
The centre will be anchored by a 13,000 square foot SuperValu outlet, and will also house two other large retailers and 13 smaller shop units.
Moriarty, who failed to win a seat in last year’s general election, also owns SuperValu supermarkets in Palmerstown, west Dublin, and in Balbriggan in north Dublin. He has just completed a €7.5 million refurbishment of the Palmerstown store and a €7 million extension of the Balbriggan development, which also includes more than 70 apartments.
The businessman also has two hotels – the Bracken Court in Balbriggan and the Courtyard in Leixlip, which stands on the site of a brewery once owned and run by Arthur Guinness. The Bracken Court reopened last week after a €7 million refit following a fire.
‘‘We were shut for 20 weeks, but we worked day and night to get it back open,” said Moriarty. He said he was interesting in acquiring other supermarkets or hotels if they came on the market. ‘‘We are open for business and keen to expand,” he said.
Sunday Business Post
www.buckplanning.ie
Thursday, 4 September 2008
Fingal planners tackle Ikea on pole proposal
RETAIL FURNITURE giant Ikea has been refused permission for a large 118ft sign off Dublin’s M50 because it would be “superfluous” and a road hazard.
The Swedish retailer sought permission to erect a “navigation tower” which would be topped by a three-sided sign with the store’s distinctive blue-and-yellow logo.
The mast, almost a third of the height of the Dublin spire, was proposed to be built beside the 30,000sq m (322,917sq ft) superstore Ikea is building at Ballymun off the M50. Ikea has also been refused permission for a second 56ft by 17ft advertising sign on the northern end of the superstore.
This is the most recent in a litany of setbacks for the furnishing giant. Last July it emerged that the store’s opening will be put back by at least seven months because of delays in completing the M50 upgrade, a condition of its planning permission from An Bord Pleanála.
Now Ikea faces a major battle with planners at Fingal County Council who have refused permission for two trademark signs at the complex at Ballymun.
In its planning application the store said the principal purpose for the proposed sign was to aid motorists to find the store from a distance, giving them a chance to prepare for an exit off the M50.
The navigation tower forms part of the store’s “trade dress” and is fundamental to the overall Ikea package being evident at all Ikea stores around the world, Ikea added.
Fingal County Council said it did not accept that such a tall sign was required to give motorists on the M50 advanced warning. A signage strategy already planned for the public road network will be sufficient to enable motorist to navigate their way to the Ikea site, the council stated.
A sign of this height so close to the motorway would be “a hazard in terms of distracting road users”, according to the council.
Granting permission would contravene the council’s policy to restrict non-essential advertising and would create an undesirable precedent for other signs off the M50, the council planners added.
The Irish Times
www.buckplannng.ie
The Swedish retailer sought permission to erect a “navigation tower” which would be topped by a three-sided sign with the store’s distinctive blue-and-yellow logo.
The mast, almost a third of the height of the Dublin spire, was proposed to be built beside the 30,000sq m (322,917sq ft) superstore Ikea is building at Ballymun off the M50. Ikea has also been refused permission for a second 56ft by 17ft advertising sign on the northern end of the superstore.
This is the most recent in a litany of setbacks for the furnishing giant. Last July it emerged that the store’s opening will be put back by at least seven months because of delays in completing the M50 upgrade, a condition of its planning permission from An Bord Pleanála.
Now Ikea faces a major battle with planners at Fingal County Council who have refused permission for two trademark signs at the complex at Ballymun.
In its planning application the store said the principal purpose for the proposed sign was to aid motorists to find the store from a distance, giving them a chance to prepare for an exit off the M50.
The navigation tower forms part of the store’s “trade dress” and is fundamental to the overall Ikea package being evident at all Ikea stores around the world, Ikea added.
Fingal County Council said it did not accept that such a tall sign was required to give motorists on the M50 advanced warning. A signage strategy already planned for the public road network will be sufficient to enable motorist to navigate their way to the Ikea site, the council stated.
A sign of this height so close to the motorway would be “a hazard in terms of distracting road users”, according to the council.
Granting permission would contravene the council’s policy to restrict non-essential advertising and would create an undesirable precedent for other signs off the M50, the council planners added.
The Irish Times
www.buckplannng.ie
Thursday, 28 August 2008
Grehan to lodge plans for landmark Howth site
PLANS FOR a luxury waterfront apartment scheme at the old Techrete site in Howth will shortly be lodged with Fingal County Council.
Ray Grehan's Glenkerrin Homes is finalising proposals for the 10-acre site which encompasses the Techrete site and the adjoining Teeling Motors site adjacent to Claremont Strand.
Glenkerrin paid €50 million for the 5.8-acre Techrete site last year when the building supplies firm Techrete decided to relocate to Balbriggan. Grehan later purchased the adjoining Teeling site.
At the time the waterfront site was billed as one of the most valuable pieces of undeveloped land in north Co Dublin.
Glenkerrin plans to build apartments, a boutique hotel, shops, offices and a leisure centre on the site.
The site has mixed-use zoning and, given its proximity to the Dart, Glenkerrin is likely to seek permission for over 500 residential units on the site.
The scheme is being designed by world-renowned architects Foster + Partner. The architecture firm has also designed Glenkerrin's 63-storey tower planned for London's docklands as well as the developer's large mixed-use Ealing Leaf scheme in Ealing, west London. In a statement issued yesterday, the developer said it is working with the local authority to develop two acres of public park and tennis courts close to the site. A new bridge allowing access to Claremount Strand and an upgraded promenade are also under negotiation.
The scheme will rejuvenate the village of Howth, according to the developer, who says that population in Howth fell by 6 per cent between 2002 and 2006.
The Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Ray Grehan's Glenkerrin Homes is finalising proposals for the 10-acre site which encompasses the Techrete site and the adjoining Teeling Motors site adjacent to Claremont Strand.
Glenkerrin paid €50 million for the 5.8-acre Techrete site last year when the building supplies firm Techrete decided to relocate to Balbriggan. Grehan later purchased the adjoining Teeling site.
At the time the waterfront site was billed as one of the most valuable pieces of undeveloped land in north Co Dublin.
Glenkerrin plans to build apartments, a boutique hotel, shops, offices and a leisure centre on the site.
The site has mixed-use zoning and, given its proximity to the Dart, Glenkerrin is likely to seek permission for over 500 residential units on the site.
The scheme is being designed by world-renowned architects Foster + Partner. The architecture firm has also designed Glenkerrin's 63-storey tower planned for London's docklands as well as the developer's large mixed-use Ealing Leaf scheme in Ealing, west London. In a statement issued yesterday, the developer said it is working with the local authority to develop two acres of public park and tennis courts close to the site. A new bridge allowing access to Claremount Strand and an upgraded promenade are also under negotiation.
The scheme will rejuvenate the village of Howth, according to the developer, who says that population in Howth fell by 6 per cent between 2002 and 2006.
The Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Wednesday, 30 April 2008
New strategy for Malahide
PLANNING DEVELOPMENT: FINGAL COUNTY Council has begun a period of public consultation on a new urban strategy for Malahide in north Co Dublin.
The council is seeking proposals for a commercial, retail, residential, amenity and leisure strategy for the town. The aim is to create a vision for Malahide which will, says the council, "provide a guide for future development proposals and for the enhancement of the vitality and viability of the town".
The county development plan also asserts that development proposals should have regard to the special historic and architectural character of the area and its special amenity and tourism value.
Issues for consideration in the strategy include the need for improved retail, leisure, hospitality, recreational and health facilities, according to the invitation for submissions. It also invites opinions on the "role of car parking", access and public transport, co-ordinated and integrated development and urban design.
Maps produced by the council indicate an area whose boundary encompasses the marina village, golf links, and green space at Malahide Demesne and Chalfont Place/Avenue. The period for submissions will be followed by the appointment of planning consultants to help the council prepare the strategy. A council spokeswoman said there were no preconceived plans, bar the guidance in relation to character and amenity need for renewal. This information, along with guidance on making a submission, may be seen at the County Hall, Swords. It is also available at the council's Blanchardstown offices at Grove Road, or at Malahide public library.
While the strategy does refer to commercial development, it is thought large scale or high density development is unlikely given the emphasis on the existing character of the town. Large scale development is already pressing ahead in the nearby, but Dublin City Council-controlled, Malahide Junction/Clare Hall area.
Dublin City Council's North Fringe Framework Development Plan recommends that the Malahide Road junction with the M50/N32 should be partially bypassed to create a new high street or boulevard which will link the emerging new town centre - Malahide Junction Centre - with another square at the planned Dart station at Clongriffin.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
The council is seeking proposals for a commercial, retail, residential, amenity and leisure strategy for the town. The aim is to create a vision for Malahide which will, says the council, "provide a guide for future development proposals and for the enhancement of the vitality and viability of the town".
The county development plan also asserts that development proposals should have regard to the special historic and architectural character of the area and its special amenity and tourism value.
Issues for consideration in the strategy include the need for improved retail, leisure, hospitality, recreational and health facilities, according to the invitation for submissions. It also invites opinions on the "role of car parking", access and public transport, co-ordinated and integrated development and urban design.
Maps produced by the council indicate an area whose boundary encompasses the marina village, golf links, and green space at Malahide Demesne and Chalfont Place/Avenue. The period for submissions will be followed by the appointment of planning consultants to help the council prepare the strategy. A council spokeswoman said there were no preconceived plans, bar the guidance in relation to character and amenity need for renewal. This information, along with guidance on making a submission, may be seen at the County Hall, Swords. It is also available at the council's Blanchardstown offices at Grove Road, or at Malahide public library.
While the strategy does refer to commercial development, it is thought large scale or high density development is unlikely given the emphasis on the existing character of the town. Large scale development is already pressing ahead in the nearby, but Dublin City Council-controlled, Malahide Junction/Clare Hall area.
Dublin City Council's North Fringe Framework Development Plan recommends that the Malahide Road junction with the M50/N32 should be partially bypassed to create a new high street or boulevard which will link the emerging new town centre - Malahide Junction Centre - with another square at the planned Dart station at Clongriffin.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
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